Of 100 Million Miles Driven by Chevy Volts So Far, 2/3 Have Been in Electric Mode

So Does the Volt Count as 2/3 of An Electric Car?

All the Chevrolet Volts on the road (about 25,000) have just cumulatively reached the symbolic milestone of 100 million miles driven. Of those miles, about two-thirds were driven in electric-only mode, and the rest used the gasoline range extender engine. That's a pretty good ratio, and probably better than many critics of the plug-in hybrid model feared. And if we deconstruct the numbers a bit, it means that significantly more than 2/3 of trips taken with the Volt are all-electric, since by definition the electric trips are shorter than the ones that end up using some gasoline, and so there are more trips per mile on the electric side.

The 2013 Volt should do even better because of the slightly longer electric driving range, and we can expect that future generations of plug-in hybrids will keep further improving on that EV vs gas ratio, though at a certain point battery technology and the deployment of fast-charging stations will probably have progressed enough that most drivers will be able to dump the gasoline engine altogether and go 100% electric.

If you want more stats on the Volt, VoltStats.net is a great source of info. It shows that many Volt owners drive more than 90% of their miles in 100% electric mode.